| -- End Ad Box ---> | | | | because you are a different person. |
| Interview conducted by Bradley Temple and John | | | | Yip Man said that just because you are good at wing |
| Kang | | | | chun doesn’t mean you can teach. If your |
| Sifu Lo Man-Kam is the nephew of wing chun | | | | students are good at wing chun, then that is testimony |
| grandmaster Yip Man, and the only student of the | | | | to your teaching skill! You might be a champion fighter, |
| grandmaster teaching in Taiwan. He recently took | | | | but if your students are bad, that shows you are a |
| some time to discuss what makes a good student, | | | | bad teacher. If a student has a good teacher, he will |
| and what to look for in a good teachera dialogue | | | | leave the school better than the teacher. Some people |
| done with the hope of passing some of his wisdom | | | | think that the student can never be better than his |
| onto the wing chun world. Those interested in | | | | teacher. But if the teacher shows the student |
| contacting sifu Lo Man-Kam about studying in Taiwan, | | | | everything, and the student continues on his own, of |
| or for questions about wing chun in general, can write | | | | course he will have both his teacher’s skill and |
| him at 4F, No. 31, Alley 51, Lane 12, Pa-teh Rd., Sec. 3 | | | | his own. I hope that someday, all of my students |
| Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C. | | | | surpass me. |
| INSIDE KUNG-FU: Could you first tell us a little about | | | | IKF: What is your approach to teaching? |
| your personal background? | | | | LMK: I use my own feeling, and push the student along. |
| LO MAN-KAM: Yip Man was my maternal uncle. | | | | I must test his feeling, to see if it is good or bad. After |
| When I was very young in Mainland China, my mother | | | | the siu nin tao, I start with single sticky hands, and then |
| told me many stories about Yip Man, so I already | | | | move to double sticky hands, passing the correct |
| knew he was very good at kung-fu. At that time | | | | feeling step by step. There is no set time frame for |
| though, he only taught a few good friends, and never | | | | this instruction: some students move faster than others. |
| considered teaching young people. Therefore, neither | | | | Being a teacher is like being a gardener you must |
| Yip Man’s own sons nor I had a chance to | | | | rend to the flowers to make sure they blossom. And |
| learn from him. However, in 1950, after The Nationalist | | | | some flowers take longer than others because of soil, |
| Party fled to Taiwan, Yip Man immigrated to Hong | | | | lighting, water... the teacher must regulate factors such |
| Kong. It was there that he first started teaching wing | | | | as the student’s own feeling, his frame of |
| chun for a living, and I had the opportunity to learn, | | | | thought, his physical strengths and limitations. |
| starting from the age of 18. | | | | Some students want to rush the process, but they can |
| There were not many students in the first class. Leung | | | | only absorb so much! It is like drowning a plant with |
| Sheung and Lok Yiu were the first two students, and I | | | | water. Once, a rich man came to me and asked me |
| was the third. Leung Sheung passed away many | | | | to teach him the wooden dummy form. He said he |
| years ago, so now, only Lok Yiu and I remain from the | | | | would pay me NT $200,000 (U.S. $8,000). I refused, |
| original class. Though I was not in Hong Kong at the | | | | and he offered me NT $500,000 (U.S. $20,000). When I |
| time, Yip Man’s sons came to Hong Kong | | | | once again refused him, he asked why. I said, If I |
| around 1960. The classes had gradually become bigger | | | | teach you the wooden dummy form, I will be stealing |
| and bigger. | | | | your money. You don’t know what the dummy |
| IKF: What did your training entail? | | | | really means; you would just be moving your arms, but |
| LMK: When I first started in 1950, the night classes ran | | | | you wouldn’t be able to apply the |
| from about 8-10 p.m. Sometimes, we would stand in | | | | movement. People must learn step by step. This is |
| the high horse stance for 20 minutes. Yip Man would | | | | the way I teach. |
| walk by, and check your stances by suddenly pushing | | | | IKF: What is your method of teaching sticky hands? |
| you. If your feet moved, he would make you do it all | | | | LMK: I think sticky hands is the most important part of |
| over again. Once we passed this stage, we had to | | | | wing chun. Without it, you just have techniques, but you |
| stand in a single-leg stance. And once again, he would | | | | don’t know the when and why of using them. |
| push your body or kick your leg to make sure you | | | | When I am doing chi sao with a student, I will always |
| were stable. | | | | give him an opening. If he doesn’t find it, I must |
| After holding the stance, we would go through the siu | | | | tell him that he had an opportunity which he did not |
| nm tao, very slowly. Again, Yip Man would always test | | | | take. I will tell him what technique works best for a |
| your hand positions to make sure they were strong, | | | | given situation, or tell them if they are chasing |
| pushing the wu sao back, or pulling the tan sao down. | | | | hands. Some people say that the teacher must |
| So in these stages, we learned not only from | | | | always do his best against the student. But this way, |
| watching, listening, and imitating, but from these random | | | | the student will never get the correct feeling. The |
| tests as well. Yip Man thought, no one will ever tell you, | | | | teacher must give the student a chance! Maybe the |
| I’m going to use my left fist to punch the | | | | student might hit the teacher, and onlookers will say |
| right side of your stomach; everything is random, so | | | | that the teacher’s kung-fu is bad. No! He is |
| your kung-fu must be live so as to adapt to | | | | giving the student a chance! He is not my enemy, he is |
| ever-changing situations. | | | | my student! Yip Man always gave his students an |
| From the form, we moved into single sticky hands, | | | | opening. |
| then lap-sao, repeating the sequence over and over | | | | I was told that at some school in Europe, the student |
| again. Then of course, we would do sticky hands. | | | | must sign a contract, and if there is any contact, the |
| Each person has a different feeling, so we would | | | | student must say, Yes, thank you sifu; or |
| work with each person in the class. We would keep | | | | Yes, sorry sifu. The sifu is scared that the |
| going until we were tired; if you stopped to read a | | | | student is better than him, so he beats him to scare |
| newspaper or goof off, someone would pull you over | | | | away any potential questions the sifu can’t |
| to do chi sao. Yip Man would always be there, telling | | | | answer. This kind of kungfu and the sifu who teaches |
| us which technique was best for a given situation; if | | | | it are bad. If it was good, why does he need a |
| your partner was tall, you should use this technique, if | | | | contract? His student asks him how to use a particular |
| he was short, use that technique. | | | | technique, and bam, bam, bam (simulates hitting |
| IKF: What did you do outside class to learn wing chun? | | | | the student); then the student will be too scared to ask |
| LMK: At that time in Hong Kong, food was very cheap, | | | | any more questions. Everything is, Yes, sifu. |
| 1 HK dollar could buy snacks for six people. So after | | | | Even if the sifu knows nothing, if you don’t ask |
| class, all the students would get together and buy | | | | questions, you will always think he is great. |
| some rice soup or fruit and talk about what we had | | | | IKF: So the sifu is worried he will lose face? |
| learned that day. Yip Man would always come with us, | | | | LMK: What is face? If my students are no good, that is |
| and answer any questions we had, or tell us where | | | | bad face; if they are good, that is good face. |
| we could have done better, or give us some insight to | | | | IKF: Some people say Yip Man taught them secret, |
| ponder. So we students had a great sense of | | | | closed-door techniques. |
| camaraderie at that time, and great respect for our | | | | LMK: I don’t think Yip Man kept any secret |
| teacher. | | | | techniques. Why didn’t he show me? Why |
| IKF: What was your relation to Bruce Lee? | | | | didn’t he show his sons? Yip Man didn’t |
| LMK: He learned from Yip Man in Kowloon. He did not | | | | teach his own son, but taught you? (laughs) Yip Man |
| study for a long time, because he later immigrated to | | | | had private students, but I don’t think he taught |
| America. Of course, I did sticky hands with him. His skill | | | | them anything he didn’t show anyone else. |
| at sticky hands was not exactly great, but he had | | | | I always teach openly. If you have a question for me, I |
| excellent feeling. His shoulders, elbows, and arms were | | | | will give you an answer. Maybe I don’t have |
| very soft, and his angles were good. | | | | time today, but tomorrow I will answer. Maybe some |
| IKF: What brought you to Taiwan? | | | | people think that after class, I just go to bed. Of course |
| LMK: I came to Taiwan about 30 years ago to enroll in | | | | at night, I will think about the question. Because you are |
| military school, after which I worked in the | | | | my student, and want my help, I will help you! All my |
| Taiwan’s equivalent of the CIA for ten years. In | | | | students are like my children. Even with my own son, I |
| 1975, after reaching the rank of major, I retired from | | | | will tell him when he is right or wrong, even in front of |
| the army and opened my own wing chun school. | | | | other students. Why should I keep any secrets? It is |
| IKF: Are you still doing anything for the public? | | | | better to have 20 good students teaching abroad than |
| LMK: One of my original students was a police officer, | | | | to have one old man in Taiwan! (laughs) This is my |
| and he told his precinct chief that I was a good | | | | way. In my class, there is no first, second, or third place. |
| teacher. They asked me to give a speech, and | | | | Everyone is the same, though some move quickly, |
| apparently were impressed. Through this introduction, I | | | | others slowly. |
| was later invited to teach martial arts to the police | | | | IKF: Do you have any last words, advice for students? |
| special forcessimilar to the FBI of America. I wrote | | | | LMK: When doing sticky hands, do your techniques |
| a book called, The Martial Art of the Police for them. It | | | | quickly, but don’t hurry. This means depending |
| is like a text book, dealing with kung-fu, though not wing | | | | on your feeling to find an opening, not using your speed |
| chun in particular. | | | | to force one. Quickly means going to college, getting |
| IKF: How do you think Yip Man influenced your way of | | | | an education, and finding a good job. Hurrying means |
| teaching? | | | | robbing a bank. If you hurry with your techniques, you |
| LMK: In Hong Kong, Yip Man had many classes, and | | | | will not learn anything. In the end, you will have nothing. |
| sometimes, Leung Sheung, Lok Yiu, and I had a chance | | | | Furthermore, you must remember that chi sao is not a |
| to teach some of these classes. Yip Man taught us | | | | freefight, not sparring. In a freefight, you hit my chin, I hit |
| how to teach. He placed great importance on chi sao. | | | | your chin; you break my nose, I break your nose. |
| Kung-fu is like a sport, a dead thing. You can perform | | | | There is no winner or loser when both of you are |
| a tan sao, or bong sao, but these mean nothing unless | | | | missing teeth! Free chi sao, however, is with two |
| they can be executed based on feeling. How you | | | | friends, who want to learn from each other. You stop |
| learn to use these depends on your teacher. Maybe a | | | | here (he punches at a student but stops before |
| woodworker can carve a bird. He can give you the | | | | making contact) because you are afraid to hurt your |
| carving, or he can teach you how to use a knife. And | | | | partner, and he does the same because he is afraid to |
| of course, your carving will be different from his, | | | | hurt you. |